Writing: Why Does it Matter to You?

Memoirist, Judith Barrington quotes Natalia Rachel Singer on page 35 of her book, Writing the Memoir, saying, "The real question for anyone writing from his or her own life is... 'Why do you care'?" I would take it a step further and say that this question is important for any one who writes, not just memoirists.

As writers, we constantly assess what our audience cares about. What is popular in the news today? What is getting the most hits in the search engines? What sells? It is vital to consider these things if we want to have a successful writing career. However, if we forget to include our own interests and desires in our search for good writing material, we leave out the most important part.

Each writer is unique and has something to offer that no one else has. No one can write like you and have the impact that you do. This uniqueness is lost when we no longer write from within ourselves. Think of the many articles you read each week. You probably don't remember the names of most of the writers. Why? Because so much of the writing we are exposed to is generic and lacks the writer's sense of self. There isn't anything distinct about it; nothing that sets it apart from all the others.

Unfortunately, many writers shy away from revealing a sense of self in their work. It is because of fear and insecurities. I struggle with this myself. It usually goes something like this: I have a great topic idea. I am excited about it and get to work writing, putting down anything I feel is important to say. Then I go back over, and read it. I start cutting things out. "No one is going to want to read that...nobody cares what your opinion is...People are going to be angry if you say that." On and on it goes, until there isn't a trace of me left in the finished product.

I submit the article. It sounds professional...It has good information, but I still feel somewhat let down. Why? Because what I was excited about: sharing my own insights, ideas, feelings, experiences and suggestions, wasn't what I finished with.

I recently went over all of the articles I have published on Associated Content and I discovered something interesting. The articles I have written that are from a personal perspective, that include some experience from my life, or that were written in a style that I enjoyed are the ones that are performing the best, and that I've received the highest upfront payments for.

When I read articles, columns, books, etc, I like to feel like the writer is a real person, to feel the humanness of them. That is only possible if the writer is willing to write from within, and let themselves be seen on the page. Isn't that the kind of writing that we are the most moved by? Motivated by, comforted by?

Being a writer is a scary thing sometimes. We put a lot on the line every time we write a piece that other eyes will see. It is incredibly difficult to muster up the courage to be transparent in our work. And of course no one has to be. But, regardless of what path we all choose to take in our writing, The question still remains, "Why does writing matter to you...Why do you care?"